Lamp shade hanger



Dec. 28, 1954 w. J. DULLE LAMP SHADE HANGER Filed June 23, 1952 I V I I I I I I I I I I I INVENTOR.

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United States Patent This. invention :relates to structure for supporting,

storing, packaging and displaying articles of merchandisc that are normally. diificult to handle and,.at the .Sametime, protect against damage :in the aforesaid op GIatIOIIS, the hanger structure :forming 'the structure ,ihereof being particularly adapted for use in connection with lamp shades.

it .is .the primary .object .of this invention. '10 provide ;a sectional hanger assemblyswherein all :the. sections,

whether the assembly .-is placed :in use for storage, .display, packing or-shipping purposes, receivesaone or ,more shades and rigidly holds the same in place and, therefore, against damage. The most important .object of this invention, is .to p rovide a hanger assembly that is adapted to receive a relatively large number of shades and thereby support the same. without utilizing large spaces and, .at the same vtime,-elfectively hold :the shades themselves separate and, when used for display :pur- :poses, exhibiting .all .of .the shades adequately to view by lthe potential .purchaser. to provide a hangerassemblytwherein each hanger is Another object 1 thereof is provided with a'maln support and a pair of opposed hook-like members adapted for .releasable, interlocking lc)o{1nectionwith identical .hangers thereabove and theree ow.

Other objects include the way in which the main support of each hanger section or unit is adapted to receive various types of shades and, particularly, the ring or hub thereof; the Way in which the said main support is adapted for receiving a wheel-like frame that is, in turn, provided with spokes, each itself being provided to support a shade; the manner of providing a releasable mounting means on the main support for shades or for the frame aforementioned; the manner of forming one of the hooks of the hanger units to receive a setscrew whereby the hangers may be releasably joined together; and the way in which the entire unit, including the hooks, the main center support and an upstanding, threaded pin on the latter, are aligned for balance when the sections are inter-connected and thereby adapted to receive the lamp shades.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is an enlarged perspective view of one unit of the lamp shade hanger made pursuant to the present invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged, transverse, cross-sectional view taken on line II--II of Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 3 is a side elevational view of the hanger assembly illustrating lamp shades mounted thereon; and

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary, enlarged, perspective view illustrating an auxiliary frame assembly and the manner of mounting the same on one of the hanger units.

As apparent from the drawing, the hanger assembly for articles of merchandise, such as lamp shades, includes a plurality of identical, individual units that may be releasably inter-connected in an elongated string to any length desired, depending upon the number of lamp shades to be associated together in a single unit. Each hanger unit 10 includes a main plate-like support 12 that is substantially midway between the ends of the unit 10. A cavity 14 that is preferably circular is formed in the uppermost face of the plate 12 and an upstanding, externally threaded pin or stud 16 within the cavity 14 on its axis is rigid to the plate 12. The pin 16 is adapted to receive a nut 18, having a washer 20 that is preferably secured to the nut 18 and may "ice well'havea diameter greater than the diameter of=the cavity 14. v

The .plate :12 .has an uppermost hook-like leg 22 integral therewith and .a lowermost :hook-like leg. .24 depending ztherefrom. As is best illustrated :in Fig. 3 .of the drawing, ;leg 22 and plate 12 present a substantial- :ly .C-shaped configuration. A downwardly facing notch 26 is formed in the leg 22 at the uppermost end thereof and within that portion. of the. :leg 22. which partially overlies the plate 12. An indentation 28.:in the leg 22 ;is shown :in Fig. lrdirectlyvabove the notch 26.

Leg .24 is..-virtually straight .andiextends .laterally at ;the lowermost end :thereof to receive .a tapped plate 30 receiving -a setscrew .32. It is noted that the legs 22 .and 24 are offset relatively on opposite sides .ofthe normally vertical, longitudinal .axis of thethreadedpin 16. The space between plate v30 and leg 24, the longitudinal axis .of :the. pin 16, as Well as-sthelindentation 28, are all insubstantial vertical alignment.

Plate 12 is provided with a .pair .of openings-3410 receive pinsf36 forming a part of.-an auxiliary :frame .38. Plate 12 is :also provided \with .aguide lug .42 against which the conventional :ring of .a bridge. lamp :frame is placed whensuch shades are'to be supported.

The auxiliary :frame is :adapted to support small shades of .the so-calledvanity type ,and comprises-the :hub '01 disk 40, perforated as .at .41 to clear pin-16 and ,also perforated as at 43 :tolclear guide :lug 42. The :pins .36 [extend through openings 34 :when the auxiliary frame is innplace .and wing nuts 48 are positioned .on pins 36 .to bear against-the lower side of plate 12.

A plurality .of [radial arms 44 .project.outwardly from disk 40 :and .eachhas a substantially. U-shaped rhook 46 on ;the outermost end thereof. Each :hook is :threadedas :at 49 and is adapted :to receive a washer50 .and ;a wing nut 52.

The hangerunits 10 maybe. used in 1a ,ratherwlarge :number of differing ways,nwith .or wiithoutzzthe frame 38; one manner of use is shown in Fig. 3 of the drawing and contemplates the inter-connection of a plurality of units 10 utilizing the hook-like legs 22 and 24. The notch 26 of leg 22 receives the leg 24 of a hanger thereabove and, obviously, the leg 24 receives an identical hanger suspended therebelow. Upon tightening of the set screw 32 the latter will seat itself in the indentation 28 and the sections or units 10 will be releasably interconnected as shown in Fig. 3.

One type of lamp shade adapted to be supported by the hanger assembly hereof is shown in Fig. 3 of the drawing and designated by the numeral 58. Shade 58 has a frame in the usual manner that includes a center-most ring 66 and a plurality of spokes 62 radiating from the ring 60. In some types of shades the ring 60 will seat within the cavity 14 and, in other shades employing rings of larger diameter, such rings will rest upon the uppermost face of plate 12. When the rings 60 fit within the cavity 14, the spokes 62 will rest upon the plate 12. In either event the nut 18 is applied to the stud 16 and the washer 20 will bear against the ring 60 and hold the shades 58 properly centered and against displacement. When a shade 58 is thus mounted on each unit 10 respectively, shades 58 will be held in partial telescoping relationship, as shown in Fig. 3 of the drawing, whereupon the entire assembly may be hung from a nail, wire, or other fastening means, for purposes of storage and/or display. A wire or cable stretched across a room will receive a large number of assemblies and, particularly, the notches 26 of the uppermost unit 10 of each assembly.

It is further to be noted that shades 58 of various types may be mounted as shown in Fig. 3 upon a string of sections 10 and the shades 58 will be held apart thereby facilitating packing and shipment Without fear of damage to the shades themselves.

There are many other types of lamp shades, such I as vanity shades, having the well-known double loop type of wire construction for attaching the same to the lamp bulb of a vanity or table lamp and the frame 38 has been designed especially for accommodating this type of shade. Each loop 46 will receive the wire-like frame mounting means of a vanity shade and the arms 44 will project above the uppermost edge of the vanity shade because of the offset relationship of the hook or loop 46 with respect to the arm 44. Washer 50 will close the gap in the hook 46 and wing nut 52 will hold the vanity lamp in place when the nut 52 is applied to the threaded end 49 of hooks 46. Here, again, one or more assemblies may be used, either with or without the lamp shades as at 58. In other words, some of the units 10 of the string may be used to receive frames 38 and the remaining units 10 placed in use to support shades of the type shown in Fig. 3 of the drawing.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: 1. A hanger for articles provided with a ring having a number of spokes radiating outwardly therefrom, said hanger comprising a support; a spider-like device having a perforated disk and a plurality of arms radiating from the disk; an upstanding pin on the support, the perforation in the disk receiving said pin; an upright hook member on the support adapted for releasable, interlocking connection with a hanger thereabove; a hook member depending from the support adapted for releasable, interlocking connection with a hanger therebelow; and releasable means on each arm respectively, each engageable with the ring of an article to mount the latter thereon.

2. A hanger for articles provided with a ring having .a number of spokes radiating outwardly therefrom, said hanger comprising a support; a spider-like device having a perforated disk and a plurality of arms radiating from the disk; an upstanding pin on the support, the perforation in the disk receiving said pin; an upright hook member on the support adapted for releasable, interlocking connection with a hanger thereabove; a hook member depending from the support adapted for releasable, interlocking connection with a hanger therebelow; and releasable means on each arm respectively, each engageable with the ring of an article to mount the latter thereon, said disk having a number of releasable fasteners for joining the same to the support.

3. A hanger for lamp shades having a ring and a plurality of spokes radiating therefrom; a C-shaped de vice having a'horizontal plate provided with an upstanding, threaded pin and an upstanding leg provided with a hook at the uppermost end thereof adapted for releasable, interlocking connection with a hanger thereabove; a leg depending from the plate having a hook adapted for releasable, interlocking connection with a hanger therebelow; a setscrew on the depending leg for clamping the same to said hanger therebelow; a spider-like frame having a disk resting on the plate and provided with a perforation receiving said pin, and a number of arms radiating from the disk, said plate having a disk-receiving cavity; a nut on the pin holding the disk in the cavity; a number of screws joining the disk and the plate; and a bolt and nut assembly on each arm respectively, each bolt being adapted to receive a lamp shade ring.

4. A hanger for articles provided with a ring having a number of spokes radiating outwardly therefrom, said hanger comprising a support; a spider-like device having a perforated disk and a plurality of article-receiving arms radiating from the disk; an upstanding pin on the support, the perforation in the disk receiving said pin; an upright hook member on the support adapted for releasable, interlocking connection with a hanger thereabove; a hook member depending from the support adapted for releasable, interlocking connection with a hanger therebelow; and releasable means on the pin for holding the disk on the support.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 182,265 Barker Sept. 19, 1876 281,832 Bryan July 24, 1883 1,017,530 Garland Feb. 13, 1912 1,762,761 Chamberlainet al. June 10, 1930 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 12,352 Great Britain May 30, 1903 

